On the Road Again
by CheyanneChika
Summary: Tris, Briar and Niko decide travel instead of going home for the summer. Travel through Sotat and Ninver, eventually. Had to create a lot of OC since none of the main characters hook up with each other...EVER. Finally off-hiatus after two years
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any _The Circle_ characters…capiche?**

**This is the result of being so blocked on my regular stories that I have to work on something that I know no one will read since all of my fans are fan girls who don't give a damn about straight characters. *pause to fall into depression* moving on, I determined the intro to this story a good four years ago when I first read _The Will of the Empress_. (so I'm not stealing from the rumors of Tris going to Lightsbridge) I always thought it would be interesting and since the only story I can find that is similar has been abandoned, I am going to actually try and write this. To anyone who actually reads this, after the first couple of chapters, updates will probably be few and far between because I will hopefully have gotten over my writer's block and gotten back to working on my regular stories which none of you will read since I've only talked to one person who reads both Tamora Pierce and Yaoi. In any case I am done rambling and I will now start my story. I hope you like.**

**Chapter One**

This was it…the end. She was done for.

Thoughts such as these ran through Tris's mind as she stared anywhere but at her old teacher who stood at the front of the room. The Lightsbridge Academy professor had told them the last week of school after finals would be just guest speakers, there to impart their wisdom on the many students. What her professor had failed to mention was that the last lecturer of the year would be the famous Truthsayer, Niklaren Goldeye.

And, in retrospect, if she had known, she might not have been bothered but for the fact that he mentioned her every few minutes. Not by name, thank the Gods, she was trying to be low key here, keeping her identity as one of the four most powerful ambient mages in the hemisphere a secret, but he started one out of every four sentences with "My student…" and ended it by stating whatever miraculous thing she'd done in relation to whatever topic he was on—which she couldn't remember because she was too busy grinding her teeth and tamping down her temper before her braids started sparking with lightning.

When the lecture finally ended, several students raised their hands. He called on two, answering the questions with simple replies. The third, however, asked, "Sir, you make many references to a student. I take it you are referring to multiple people?"

Niko's smile held a hint of laughter in it that forced Tris to double her efforts to keep her anger at bay. "Indeed not. I never had such a talented young mage before her, nor do I expect to have one like her again. Oh and, as extra incentive for all of you to work hard for the rest of your lives, all of the things I mentioned her doing were done before she turned fifteen."

"But sir, that's impossible. No one is so powerful at such a young age."

"Nothing is impossible." Niko's eyes swept the room, locking on hers for a few seconds before they flicked to the professor who stepped forward.

"Let's all thank Master Goldeye for coming to our class." The class broke out into applause and calls of thanks. Tris huffed and started packing her things. She headed for the door only to hear the teacher call, "A moment, Miss Chandler."

What had she done now? She sighed and backtracked to the podium at the front of the classroom, waiting as it emptied out, leaving her alone with Niko and Professor Wordsmith. "Is something wrong?" she asked while thinking that the last thing she needed was to be berated by this teacher in front of Niko.

"Nothing of the sort. I thought you'd want to know that you scored a ninety-eight on the final, highest in the class."

A very small smile graced her lips. "Thank you, sir. Enjoy your summer." She attempted, once more, to leave.

"Wait, there is one more thing."

"Oh?"

"Yes." He looked rather awkward. "Well, one of your other professors mentioned this to me and when I think about it, I notice it too. You seem to use very little magic. You came here, displayed some noncommittal magic for the seer and started classes. We assumed you had magic but were unable to find your calling as of yet. I was actually going to ask Master Goldeye to look at your magic to determine what classes you should take next semester. It is important that you take classes that are more geared to your magic."

Tris just stared at him for a moment. Then she looked at Niko who was twirling his mustache in order to hide his smile. Since it showed in his eyes, though, it was a useless act. She glowered at him.

"So what do you both think?" Professor Wordsmith asked, fidgeting slightly at the strange expressions flickering between the student and her old teacher.

"Fine," she growled softly.

Niko cocked an eyebrow. Then he looked into her eyes. Tris watch the faint glow of his magic flow from his body to hers. He let the magic swirl in her for a moment before he pulled it back and let it fade from her sight. He looked to her professor. "There seems to be a mix of academic and ambient magic, seeing, possibly weather related. For the moment, I would suggest that she continue to choose her own classes until her powers become more specific."

The teacher nodded. "Very well."

"Well, I'm leaving, enjoy your summer."

"Trisana, I have more to discuss with you," Niko called.

Tris bit her lip. She hadn't seen Niko in well over a year now. She did very much want to catch up but the part of her that wanted to keep her identity secret won out. "I'm heading for home tonight, why don't you come as well?"

"I'm not going back to Emelan for awhile. That was actually what I wanted to discuss with you."

She hesitated, biting her lip as she considered. "There's a small café a brief ways south of the campus on Brick Street. "Shall I meet you there after my next class? It's the last one."

"Of course, I will meet you there."

**To be continued…**

**Okay, what do you all think so far? Should I keep writing this? If you like it, it will pick up.**

**Please review**

**~CheyanneChika**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters but the ones I create.**

**Yay, people reviewed. *blissfully happy***

**No giant ramble here, just gonna get to the story.**

**Chapter Two**

Tris left the classroom abruptly and hurried down the hall. She was almost to her next class when a tiny breeze from an open window wafted part with a bright image of something purple and green. She wanted to know what it was so she swiftly caught the breeze to look more closely as she walked. The image was of a monstrous amount of morning glories on the side of a fence. The image began to flicker as the wind faded. She tried to keep it there and ended up not noticing the reality of a very solid body that was suddenly before her.

She stumbled backwards, her books, papers and glasses flying in all directions and mixing with the books that tumbled from the arms of the youth she'd crashed into.

"S-sorry," she sputtered, scrambling to gather her books.

"It's my fault, I wasn't looking where I was going," the man replied chivalrously. He bent down to gather his books as well.

"Neither was I," Tris replied, grabbing the last book. Her eyes shot around, squinting for her glasses.

"Here." The blurry outline of a hand thrust her glasses into her range of vision. She took them and put them on to look at the boy. He smiled at her with very white teeth. She looked into his dark green eyes, so like the sea after a storm. His hair was two or three inches longer than necessary for a boy and honey blonde, but it still looked good. In fact, everything about him was good looking with the exception of his chin, which was a bit too pointed, contrasting with his childishly cute face.

And why was she memorizing his face all of the sudden? She quickly snapped out of it and shoved herself to her feet, ignoring the boy's hand which he was holding out for her. She was a mage, not a helpless girl who needed a man to do everything for her. He rescinded the hand at her pointed glare.

"So," he started. "I'm Nariss Porter, what's your name?"

"Tris," she said shortly.

"It's a pleasure."

"Yeah." Still short.

"Well, sorry for bumping into you. I'll uh, see you next year."

"Yeah, later." She stalked past him to her last class.

…

Tris was walking to the restaurant where she'd agreed to meet Niko when a different familiar presence sent her flying into the place with a furious expression. Inside, her eyes shot around until a boy at the other end of the building stood and smiled. "Hey Coppercurls."

"What are you doing here, Briar?" She glowered darkly, even as she walked over to his table.

He looked her over. "Saving you," he said, before smiled at a passing serving girl. "'Scuse, can I get two racks of lamb please? And some Oolong Tea."

The girl fluttered at the flirtatious smile and said, "Coming right up."

Tris raised an eyebrow. "Saving me from what? And what's with all the food?"

"I'm saving you from starvation. I mean, I heard that academic life meant there was no time to eat but seriously."

"What?" She looked down at herself. She hadn't even noticed that her dress was at least two sizes two large. When had that happened? "Well, I'll have to remedy that."

"Don't, you look gorgeous."

"Shut up," she snapped. Her brother giving her weird compliments was not was she wanted to deal with right now. "Where's Niko?"

"I don't know. I just probed your mind while you weren't paying attention. Who's the guy you were chatty with by the way?"

She ignored the question. "Don't you know it's rude to mind read without permission?"

"Of course," he replied easily. "That's why it's such fun."

Tris rolled her eyes and sat down. "Why are you really here?"

"Niko asked me if I wanted to travel a bit, seems he's seen some trouble in some country and my skills must be useful. Yours too since we're here."

"Goddess, I'm not gonna get one day to myself this summer, am I?"

"Not likely, but you always get grumpy when you've nothing to do."

Tris sighed. That was certainly the truth. "In any case, I still have to go back to Summersea first."

"Nope, Niko asked me to bring the rest of your books and some more clothes that Sandry made for you. Though we'll have to take them in a fair amount. Should have had her make that really pretty one out of cotton instead of silk. Oh well, the two that are made out of cotton, I can shrink down."

"Must you talk about my weight constantly?" She was starting to get irritated, or rather, more irritated.

"Sorry," he apologized. "But in any case, you don't have to go home."

"So I take it that Sandry and Daja aren't with you?"

"No. Daja's working on something with Frostpine. They've been at it for months and I've not seen them stopping in the near future."

"And Sandry?"

"Huh, her letter must not've arrived yet, elsewise, she's waiting for you to come home to tell you."

"What's going on?"

"His eminence finally gave his lazy bag of a son the boot. Sandry is now heir to the duchy throne. She can't go adventuring anymore."

"Wow." All of them, except Sandry, had assumed that she would replace the heir eventually, but the reality of it still shook Tris.

"Don't look so worried. Vedris is still fairly young and he's healthy as an ox these days."

"I know, but it's still strange to think of her being the next Duchess of Emelan."

"We could live in the palace."

"I'd like to see you living in a palace." She smiled dryly.

"Ah, you think I'd be tempted to steal things."

"You are a thief."

"Oi!" He pretended to look outraged. "I'm a reformed thief."

"Ah yes, I forgot you'd reformed after stealing that poor gentleman's purse."

"He short changed me on the tree I sold him. He paid me while I was distracted and I didn't realize that two of the gold astrals were very good illusions. I only sought retribution and I gave the purse back"

"Minus several astrals."

"Like I said, retribution."

"Uh huh."

"Oh good, you're both here," a cool voice interrupted. They both looked up to see Niko as he dropped gracefully into a vacant seat between them. "Shall we get down to business?"

"Let's," Tris replied.

**To be continued…**

**Okay, I happen to love writing dialogue between Tris and Briar. Their characters are such polar opposites that it just makes conversation more interesting. Don't worry, I'm not making their relationship anything more than that of siblings, I just like when Briar teases Tris.**

**Tris: Sadist**

**Cheyanne: Thanks for that.**

**Anyway, please review, I'm sure it's fairly dull so far but I hope to make it pick up somewhat as the story goes on.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing, like you don't already know that.**

**Chapter Four**

Tris glowered at the runner cart that delivered traveling students' luggage to town where they could purchase their own carts or meet family to help them take their things home. The carter's horse was too old to be doing this. She deserved a rest and it showed in the speed, or lack thereof, of her gait. She could have walked to Fireside Inn near as fast. Chime seemed to agree as she finally got bored and freed herself from the confines of her cloth satchel and took off into the air, swooping and catching the light. Tris watched since it was more interesting than the road before her.

Once she finally arrived at the inn, she found an overly cheerful brother who instructed the carter to move her things into his and Niko's cart. She stared at said cart. "What is it?" Briar asked.

"I thought men were supposed to pack lightly."

"We did, most of that is stuff Niko told me to bring for you since we aren't stopping in Summersea."

"So you decided I needed everything I owned."

"I didn't bring your desk...or your bed."

Tris rolled her eyes and looked around. "Where's Niko?"

"Settling up with the innkeeper. Hello Chime," he called, catching a flash of color as the dragon passed in front of the sun.

She nodded and went over to a bench to sit down. There, she closed her eyes and reached out with her magic. She searched the skies to the south. She found only one storm on the way north that would hit them by tomorrow at the latest. More likely it would hit during the night. It didn't matter though since they would stay dry whether they were in an inn or camping out. She searched the southwest and southeast for more and there were a few storms, but at this distance, there was little she could predict other than that they might hit over the course of the next two weeks. Whether they would hit her party she wouldn't know for a few more days.

She opened her eyes to see Niko had joined them. "Good morning, Tris."

"Morning," she muttered, getting to her feet and stretching.

"See anything interesting?" he asked lightly.

"Storm will hit us tomorrow or late tonight."

"We'll have to find an inn tonight then."

"Not necessarily." Briar had joined them. "All we have to do is make sure Tris doesn't sleep."

"I can hold the barrier while sleeping, thank you very much," Tris growled.

"I hope so since it would suck if you have a nightmare and lose your grip on the magic."

"What would it matter to you? You can always find some girl on a farm and she'll drag you to her room in two seconds flat."

"Anything's possible."

"I was kidding."

"I wasn't."

Tris shivered and turned away. "Let's go."

…

Unfortunately, Tris's prediction came true just as they were settling into camp. Tris threw up a barrier easily, then drew a small amount of power from one of her thicker wind braids to keep the strength in her barrier up while she slept.

"I'll take first watch," Briar offered. Unfortunately for him, there were no nearby farms.

"Don't wander off after a mysterious girl if she happens to walk by," Tris grunted before rolling over in her sleeping bag. She listened to the rain beat lightly on her barrier for a few moments before she drifted off.

Her dreams were strange. Lights and colors and glassy eyes spread through her vision. The clearest thing she saw was a boy of maybe twelve with raggedy un-matching clothes ranging from holey, black breeches, light brown worn shoes, a yellow shirt and a bright blue sash. In fact, the sash was the only thing that looked new.

Then her dreams turned nasty. Flashes of water hitting her in the face while a boat rocked beneath her feet, an ugly hand reached out of the shadows to grab Briar by his neck. She felt it was rather reminiscent of when she was in Khapik but that man was gone and they weren't going anywhere near that place.

Then Briar shook her awake. She looked up at him to see he was wet. She looked around and realized that her barrier had shrunken somewhat. "It's your turn." Then he turned to look at Niko, who was covering his head with his oiled coat to hold off the rain. "You owe me a silver astrel." At Tris's raised eyebrow, he replied, "I bet that you wouldn't be able to keep the barrier up."

"Shut up bleater," she snapped, the barrier flared out again.

"Ooh, not nice." Briar grinned and flopped down on his own mat.

As soon as he was asleep, Niko got up and went to Tris. "This isn't like you. When we were traveling you could hold it easily in your sleep."

"I had weird dreams." She thought back over them.

"Were they prophetic?"

"I don't know, maybe."

"See anything important?"

"Briar was being grabbed, a boy with a blue sash, a rocking boat…and glassy eyes."

"Hmm," Niko murmured placidly.

"Thanks for the help," she said dryly.

"Sorry, dream interpretation was never one of my strengths."

"Yeah, well get to bed. I'll wake you in a few hours."

"Good night, Tris."

"Night."

**To be continued…**

**Ugh, that was really short. Sorry about that but I'm blanking on what to write next. Ah well, I'll figure something out. In any case, please review and thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Once again, I own absolutely nothing.**

**Yay, I actually got a couple of reviews, woot!**

**Chapter Five**

Tris woke in the morning to see that, while her wind barrier held, the rain had moved on. She absorbed the wind back into her braids and worked out of her sleeping bag. She looked over to see Niko was awake and prepping breakfast. Briar, on the other hand, was still asleep, his arm wrapped around his favorite Shakkan.

"Morning, Tris. Do you want eggs and toast?" Niko asked, seeing she was awake.

"Just toast," she replied.

"Both for me," came Briar's sleepy voice. He sat up a bit and rubbed his eyes. "Morning Coppercurls."

Tris rolled her eyes. He'd been calling her that since she was ten. Couldn't he think of anything else? Her hair wasn't even curly anymore. Come to think of it though, Coppercornrows didn't sound any better.

"Coming up." Niko cracked four eggs into a pan to let them cook and set pieces of bread into another to cook once the eggs were done.

At the same time, she got up and went to the cart, grabbed some fresh riding clothes and disappeared behind a thicket to change. When she returned, a plate with two slices of toast was balanced on a rock, waiting for her. She sat down and munched her toast. "Thanks."

After breakfast, they cleaned up camp and headed south. Tris let her horse, whom she'd named Shadow Breeze because of his grayish black coat and sleek build, go as he pleased while she meditated and watched flashes on the wind. She saw nothing overly interesting. The wind was blowing from the west, bringing her views of only mountain animals and of things very far away.

"Anything good?" Briar asked as she shut her eyes and let the meditation turn into normal breathing.

"No." She looked out at her present surroundings. She looked at the occasional trees along the road and something snagged at her memory. "Oh, Briar one of the first times I tried this, I saw a mansion that was taken over by plants imbued with your magic. Care to explain?"

Niko raised an eyebrow at this turn in conversation. Briar looked down. "The owner of the house was a gang leader who captured Evvy to use her for her magic. I got angry and grew my Shakkan along with all the other plants in the house."

"Oh. Well, it was pretty." What else could she say?

Briar smirked. "Yeah, but you also think lightning is pretty."

"It is," she snapped.

Briar just laughed. Niko smiled a little too.

She rolled her eyes and looked out at the road. They still had a long way to go.

…

The next few days flew by. They stayed in inns where they could but camped as well. They encountered bandits only once on the way through Karang. They'd only been a couple miles north of a town and were able to send some villagers out to collect the five men who had been terrorizing their town to collect them from their plant and wind woven cages on the side of the road.

In the village, they decided to take a rest day; the horses were going ragged and they didn't have spares. They found a small inn with two available rooms on the second floor. The men shared, leaving Tris to her own devices. That was fine with her. If she started to drool while scrying, no one would come in and see it. She smiled wryly at herself. Briar would never let her forget it.

She sighed, the tiny smile dropping off her face. A breezed played with her hair. She looked at it, searching for images in it. A flicker of light showed a young man walking down a small road, a teenage girl hiding behind a wall, grinning from ear to ear while a laughing boy of the same age looked for her. Then a mother clutching a baby, crooning over it while a small child in a ratty skirt played next to her mother's feet. The wind spun around her again with no new images and she released it with an extra push of her own breezes to keep it going.

It sailed away with an affectionate flick on her cheek disappeared out of the window. "Having fun with your little breezes?" Briar asked from the open doorway.

She turned with a glower. "Have you forgotten how to knock since we left Discipline?"

"No, I remembered while I was traveling with Rosethorn. Then I forgot."

"I see," she said dryly. "In any case, get out."

"I came to tell you we're going out for lunch."

"Oh fine, I'll be down in a minute." She waited until Briar pulled the door shut before she took a few deep breaths. "Chime?" she called. The dragon leapt from the bed and flapped over to her shoulder. Then she followed after Briar.

The restaurant was small but it had outdoor seating where they could allow Chime to come and go as she pleased. They whiled away an hour or so, discussing Tris's schooling and Briar's thriving business selling Shakkans. Niko seemed to be trying to avoid any topic involving himself. Tris said as much telepathically to Briar, who agreed. Something was definitely off about their teacher.

_Maybe it's something to do with this Noriko person,_ Briar suggested.

Tris shook her head slightly. _Niko would never…_ She paused. The truth was that, for all the time they'd spent together, she knew little about Niko's private life. When he had been teaching her, he hadn't seemed to have one. Now, of course, she realized how naïve that type of thinking was. Of course Niko had a private life. It just didn't concern her.

_He is a man you know. We do have certain needs._

_Learn to repress them._

_I'm not a girl so I can't._

_You sexist—_

"Um, if you two would mind speaking aloud? I'm getting rather confused with all the glaring from you," he looked at Tris, "and the smirking from you." He turned to Briar.

"Sorry," they both murmured. Tris focused back on her food while Briar engaged Niko in a conversation about when exactly he would have time to sell his Shakkans if they didn't stay in the same place for more than a day.

"We'll slow down once we hit the bigger cities. We'll spend at least a week in the Battle Islands and Hajra will have to be a stop as well unless we get truly lucky and there is a ship leaving for the Battle Islands shortly after our arrival. Nensye will be our stop for several weeks and you can sell Shakkans in Ninver. Apparently they are extremely rare there and you can fetch a high price from nobles or even the local merchants trying to turn a profit in the winter when they cannot travel."

"You could probably sell a couple to my parents. They know what's useful to the family and what's not." The bitter edge to the words made it impossible to tell if she was serious or sarcastic.

Briar tried to make light of it though, as he always did. "I'll sell them the short, stubborn one that won't let even me alter her growth."

Tris gave him a hard jab through their magical connection. Aloud, she said, "Please don't compare me to a tree."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't compare you to lightning or wind or earthquakes."

"But you compare me to goats," he argued.

"That's your fault. You introduced it to us so it's your problem if we use it against you, _kid._"

Briar submitted with a tilt of his head in acknowledgement.

Niko, who'd been quiet while his old students bickered, spoke again. "It's good to know that the two of you can work out your differences in less than ten minutes now."

Tris looked at Niko with raised eyebrows while Briar applied an offended expression to his face. "Please, we never argue the way we did when we were young."

"I'm glad to hear it," Niko replied, sounding genuine. "I've not seen you all together in such a long time. I did wonder if you all could stand to be in the same room with each other."

Tris shook her head. Obviously, Niko had been disillusioned by their childish behavior prior to this. He would learn soon enough that they had matured for the most part. Granted, Briar's maturity had grown in a very different way than hers or Sandry's had, while Daja's had been similar but still very different. In any case, these last couple of years had made them all grow up. Hopefully, they'd all grown up for the best.

But probably not.

**To be continued…**

**Yay another chapter is finished. Please review!**

**Thanks for reading.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Circle of Magic characters, locale or lack of attitude adjustments.**

**This chapter is dedicated to the wonderful Iloveanimeverymuch123 who bugged me to put her in the story.**

**Chapter Six**

The inn where they stayed the next night came with a very pretty girl named Emilina. Briar had taken one look at the girl and the chase was on. Tris had watched the pair flirt at the dinner table, the girl flicking a loose strand of long brown hair behind her ear every couple of seconds.

She did make a small effort to draw Tris and Niko into the conversation. "Do you all often travel this way?"

Tris just took her head. The girl's sole interest was Briar. She didn't quite get such interests but she supposed Briar was handsome enough. She clamped down on that thought before Briar could snatch it and make her regret thinking anything at all.

"Don't worry about her, Emilina," Briar said lightly. "Now, this summer faire you were talking about earlier?"

"Ah yes." She started to describe a town faire and Tris tuned the rest out. She did notice Niko was making at least half an attempt to listen. Well, this was Briar's intended, after all…for the next few hours anyway. As soon as they reached another town with another pretty girl willing to bed him, this girl would be completely forgotten. Niko would figure that out soon enough and join in on Tris's ignorance of Briar's conquests.

Half an hour later, Tris was bedded down for the night. Across the hall, she knew Niko slept alone in the room with two beds since Briar had followed the girl elsewhere. Tris honestly couldn't care less where they'd gone as long as she wasn't within hearing range. She also put up a stronger barrier on their mental connection. She didn't want to hear the actual noise, much less her brother's thoughts and emotions during such an act.

She considered reading for a bit but changed her mind when drowsiness hit her like a brick. She let her eyes drift shut and slept until morning.

At which point she was rudely awakened by both knocking on her door and knocking on her barrier. "Coppercurls, will you get up already!"

"I'm up," she growled automatically sending a miniscule bit of lightning down their thread. Satisfied with the loud yelp from the hall, she threw off her blankets and got out of bed. She got dressed in loose, brown leggings and a pale blue, semi respectable blouse that had aged, away from Sandry for so long. She now wore it for travel purposes only. When she came out, she found Briar had already gone downstairs. Niko, however, was still in his room, moving about casually. "Good morning."

"Morning," he replied. "You know, Briar did not return until this morning."

"He's a man now, whatever that means," Tris replied. "Does it matter?"

"Only for propriety's sake."

"Then we've got nothing to worry about," she said flippantly.

Niko raised an eyebrow. "And when the girl's father comes looking?"

With a completely straight face, she replied, "Truss him up and continue on our trip."

Niko let out a startled bark of laughter that he hastily turned into a cough. "Interesting thought."

"Very interesting," Briar's voice called from the end of the hall, having reappeared. "You'll just abandon me to the locals over one little indescretion?"

"Tell that to the other five hundred odd girls you call _indiscretions_." Tris walked past him, heading down the staircase.

Briar followed after saying, "Now be fair, it's really only about four hundred…"

Niko shook his head. The terminology that stated boys will be boys rang in his ears. Still, he could never remember a time when his libido had gotten bad enough to need many multiple partners let alone four hundred.

…

When they set out in the early afternoon, Tris started scrying in the saddle again. The wind was northbound so she would see anything coming, however, she sent a particularly stout breeze south to discover how far the next town was.

There was nothing very interesting at first on these northerly winds. There was a patch of flowers and grass in a dead area. The next was a small boy and girl dancing in an alley while a boy who was probably the girl's older brother played something resembling a homemade mandolin and watching over the other two. Then, a couple of hours later as the sun was heading for the horizon, there was something closer to them, blowing from the south. She snapped out of her daze immediately.

"Niko, Briar!" she called. "There's someone injured in the road ahead!" She kicked her horse into a gallop and, the same time, Chime leapt from the horse's main and shot ahead to hover over the body. She rode until she was just a few feet short of the body and leapt from Shadow Breeze's back.

She approached the body carefully; sending out her winds to make sure this wasn't a trap. When they came up empty, she sent one to see if the young man, she guessed, was alive. It caught his breath and brought it back to her. She walked over and kneeled gently in the dirt. Then she turned him over. His face was coated in blood and his nice clothes were ripped. He'd obviously been robbed.

The pounding of other hooves signaled that Briar, Niko and the cart had caught up. Briar hopped off his horse, Moonflower, pulled his mage's kit from his saddle bags and hurried over. "Is he alive?"

"Yes," Tris replied. Briar nodded and opened his kit. He pulled out a few random powders and salves that she didn't know and opened them. The one she did recognize was something that woke people up though she couldn't remember the name. Something along the lines of smelling salts but in plant form. He held it under the man's nose and he began coughing immediately.

He opened his eyes and looked up. "Hey, you're alright, mate?" Briar asked. "Don't move, I gotta make sure you aren't still bleeding somewheres."

The man nodded, his eyes flicking from Briar to the girl. He stared. "Tris?" he murmured, his mouth still bloody.

Tris stared down. There was something about this person's eyes that made him seem familiar. Briar took a soft cloth to the injured man's face and wiped away the blood. She stared.

"Nariss?"

**To be continued…**

**Yay, a cliffhanger. Please review, even if it's to say this story sucks.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Once more, all characters belong to Tamora Pierce and I own absolutely nothing.**

**Chapter Eight**

The next day was a trying one for Tris. And every problem boiled down to one thing, Nariss Porter.

Since she did not want to reveal her powers to a fellow student who could blab about them when he returned to Lightsbridge, it meant no wind scrying to pass the time. She resorted to reading in the saddle which worked for maybe an hour while Briar and Niko chatted with the other mage as he sat in the cart but then he decided he wanted to talk to her.

"Tris," he said, suddenly appearing on foot beside Shadow Breeze, "what are you reading?"

She lifted her eyes from her book to stare him down with a look that could curdle milk before they returned to her book.

"Wow, that was some look. Do you give that to all the boys?" Her nostrils flared at the light brush off her glare had received. He went on. "You don't have to tell me if it's a secret. Let me guess, it's a novel filled with adventure and romance and scandal." He raised his eyebrows suggestively while his smile still maintained a playfulness.

She cocked an eyebrow in return, refusing to be goaded and focused hard on the sentence she'd read two times already. She was regretting letting him tag along and he'd only said a few words to her.

"Ah the silent treatment. It's my favorite. Especially since I love to talk. I can talk and talk and talk."

Tris had had enough. She closed her book with a snap. Nariss grinned, thinking he'd gotten to her. Now she would talk to him, even if it was just to berate him.

But no. Tris kicked Shadow Breeze's sides into a trot, leaving Nariss on foot in her dust.

"And fail," Briar called from behind.

"What's going on?" Niko asked.

Briar looked over at his teacher turned travel companion. "I think Nariss likes Tris."

Niko raised an eyebrow. "And how have you come to that conclusion?"

"He's clearly been flirting with her."

"Well you would know," Niko replied pointedly.

Briar stiffened. Was Niko actually teasing him about his escapades? "That's not nice. Anyway, there's no way that will work."

"Oh and why not?"

Briar gave him a look. "Have you not met Tris? She's not exactly the easiest person to get on with and, if she doesn't like someone, he isn't going to get to her. I said as much to him last night but he's near as stubborn as she is. Well, either that or he likes a challenge."

"I hope it's not the latter," Niko murmured. "That would be rather hurtful."

"We'll never know since the only people she lets under her skin are us, Sandry and Daja." He looked back. "Oh look, he's trying to catch up to her." He flicked his fingers at the boy for luck. "How long do you think Tris will hold back her powers before she hits him with lightning?"

"I thought you said he wouldn't get under her skin."

Briar shrugged. "She might just do it so he'll leave her alone faster."

"We'll only be together for two more days after this. Then we'll go on and he will receive better treatment in the next village."

"The wounds don't seem to be bothering him, though. My salves are working better than Tris thought they would. Still, there's always the chance of delayed infection. Tris is probably hoping that will kick in soon and he'll be confined to sitting in the cart."

"You seem to think Tris's life has a very poor outlook romantically. Why have you formulated this opinion?"

Briar considered it even as he stamped down the urge to make a sarcastic remork on Niko's utterly polite speech. "She doesn't want to get hurt so she shuts out any possibility of being hurt. You remember how long it took her to warm up to us. She's still frigid with all others."

"True." Niko recalled how she'd kept everyone she met in their travels together at arm's length. In all honesty, he'd started to worry until she'd begun training the Warder boy and working with the little girl, Glaki. He knew she could open up to others. The trick was to do it slowly. This blunt approach that Nariss Porter was taking was doomed if memory served.

"However, I think it will be fun to watch him fight to get her to talk to him for the next couple of days." Briar grinned at Niko who only shook his head. He looked out at the young mage who had come astride of Tris's horse and was jogging to keep pace. Of course, Tris responded by kicking the horse into a gallop and disappeared over a crest in the road. Briar chuckled while Nariss slowed to a stop before bending over. "Is he going to be sick?"

"No, just catching his breath."

Briar smirked. "Boy needs stamina."

"I doubt even you could keep pace with a horse for very long."

Briar laughed again. "Depends on how old the horse is. I'll go get him before he passes out." He kicked Moonflower into a gallop leaving Niko behind with the cart.

…

That night, when they set up camp, Nariss sat beside Tris to eat. Tris ignored him as she had done all day, eating in silence. When the time to sleep arrived, Nariss placed the spare blankets Niko had given him from the cart next to Tris's Pallet. Once more, the girl ignored him.

A short time later, just as sleep was about to surround her, Nariss murmured, "Are you awake?"

She pretended to be asleep. "Tris… Tris!"

She squeezed her eyes shut wishing she had some manner of blocking out the noise. Then she had an idea. One of her breezes had carried back to her soft music from a town to the east. She brought that wind to hover beside her ear and used magic to amplify the delicate tones in her ear, wooing her off to sleep and blocking out Nariss's voice.

**To be continued…**

**Yay, makeshift iPod! I know I'm weird. Anyway, please review and thanks for reading.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: As always, all characters are property of Tamora Pierce and only this plot is mine.**

**Chapter Seven**

Tris actually looked mildly surprised to see that the injured boy was none other than Nariss Porter. She hadn't realized he'd either left before them or gotten ahead of them at some point. She wondered why she hadn't seen him in the wind before this but then, he was a mage.

"Tris," he breathed again. "It is you."

"You know this person?" Briar asked.

"I only met him the day before I left Lightsbridge. Who did this to you?"

"Bandits." He blinked rapidly, clearly trying to ignore the pain when Briar applied healing salves that Tris knew were probably burning while they worked. "I thought I was hidden but I didn't protect my back and some came up behind me."

"Easy now," Briar coddled. "Just relax for a minute."

Nariss nodded, his eyes never leaving Tris's face. She found that slightly disconcerting; but mostly annoying. "Quit staring at me."

Nariss actually smiled. "I don't want to."

Tris cocked an eyebrow. "The pain's clearly gone to your head. Maybe you should knock him out," she said to Briar.

Briar smirked. "Is his staring bothering you that much?"

"Yes."

"Why is that?" Lightning shot down their mental connection. Briar's hand leapt to his head. "Okay okay, no need to get your petticoats in a bunch." Before she could send another shock, Briar quickly reached for a vial of a sleeping draught. "Sorry mate, but you've got to drink this. Then all the pain will go far, far away."

Nariss nodded and swallowed when Briar tipped the contents down his throat. He was asleep inside of a minute.

"You two handled that very well," Niko sounded sort of surprised.

"You make it sound like we're useless," Briar replied. "We're not."

"Forgive my rudeness," Niko said, nodding his head. "Tris, what did you say his name was?"

"Nariss Porter," Tris said shortly. "He's a student at Lightsbridge."

"He seems nice."

"Says the person who's only known him for two minutes," Tris replied.

"Says the person who's only met him once before this," Briar added. Tris's raised eyebrow had him throwing a barrier around his mind to prevent her from shocking him. "In any case, we should put him in the cart. Unless you'd rather we left him out here."

Tris didn't bother to reply as the slid her hands under the limp boy's shoulders and lifted. Briar went to the other end of the boy and grabbed his feet, not wanting to imply that it might be easier if it was the other way around. Tris might actually hit him with real lightning.

Once Nariss was loaded into the cart, Tris returned to her horse and scrambled into the saddle, ignoring the ease with which Briar hopped up. She glanced over at Niko, who didn't look like he'd even left his seat on the cart, and said, "Shall we press on?"

"Let's." Briar kicked his horse into a gallop.

"Slow down—oh what am I saying?" Niko shook his head and looked at Tris who just rolled her eyes and nudged her horse into a quick walk while she shut her eyes and tried to meditate a bit to ease the head ache that stemmed from coming out of the wind scry too fast. She hadn't noticed it while helping Porter but now it was pressing good and hard on her temple.

_You want something for it?_ Briar's voice rang in her mind. He'd picked up on her pain and, in calling out, made it worse. She glared daggers at the horse and rider who were several hundred yards down the road. _Alright, I'm sorry._

Tris didn't answer beyond rubbing her forehead. "Tris?" Niko asked.

"It's fine," Tris grunted. They rode after Briar who had stopped and got a fire going and waited for them after the sun went down. When Tris and Niko caught up, they finished setting up camp and ate quickly before settling down to relax. Tris got a book from her saddle bags and sat as close to the fire as she could without actually sitting in it for light. Niko curled in his sleeping bag since he had the next watch. Briar sat in the center of a circle of Shakkans, meditating. Tris watched the magic flow between him and his trees with a smooth delicacy that she had not seen when they were teenagers.

He was still an immature, pretty boy.

"I heard that," Briar croaked as the magic faded from her sight.

Tris just looked at him. He shrugged, not in the mood to start a fight, and started to work on rounding up his miniature trees. Then he held up one that looked more like a fat shrub with some bark. "What do you think?"

"Is that the short, stubborn one?"

"It's very cute, don't you think?"

"Then why in the Green Man's name did you compare me to it?"

"I would reply but I want to keep my head."

Tris's nostrils flared. Briar braced himself for a shock that never came. Instead, closed her book with a snap, got to her feet and went over to the cart. When they'd first settled for the night, she'd sent a breeze to hover over Porter to let her know when he sat up and disrupted its pattern. "You're awake?"

Nariss was sitting upright, rubbing his head dully. "Yeah. Sorry about all this. I got cocky."

Tris nodded. "You'll need proper healing spells. Briar's plants remedies are good but better safe than sorry."

"I understand." The boy nodded, his honey blond hair crackling as it was still matted with dry blood. "May I ride with you and your friends to the next village?"

"Do what you like. We're settled here for tonight. Next village is…" She recalled the stout wind with a tug on the braid it had come from. "…three days ride from here."

"Thank you."

She nodded and turned to go back to the fire. A cool hand wrapping around her wrist made her stop though. "Really," he said with a sparkling smile, "thank you."

She raised an eyebrow. "It's no problem." She jerked her wrist from his weak grasp and returned to the fire.

"You won't win with her, mate," a cheerful voice murmured by the other side of the cart. Nariss turned to face the youth who had treated his wounds. He moved into the light so Nariss could see his handsome features.

"Is she yours, then?" he asked.

Briar snorted. "Hah, never. I like my girls sweet and by the dozen."

"Like shortbreads?"

Briar laughed. "Exactly so." He stuck out his hand. "My name is Briar Moss. I'm Tris's foster brother. Niko Goldeye over there is one of our old teachers."

Nariss shook the hand as the names sunk in, then froze. "Niko Goldeye? As in Master Goldeye, the greatest Truthsayer of this era?"

"Yep. He's quite modest about it too." Briar's grin was infectious and soon Nariss overcame his surprise and smiled as well. "Come on, it's a lot warmer by the fire."

"Thanks." They joined the others at the fire.

**To be continued…**

**Please review, I desperately need them.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Tamora Pierce's.**

***Sob* No one reviewed...*sadness***

**Chapter Nine**

The next morning, Tris woke to find Nariss cooking breakfast. A quick glance told her that Briar and Niko were still dead to the world. She sat up and looked over. "Morning."

"Good morning!" Nariss replied cheerfully. "Would you like eggs?"

"Yeah," Tris said through a yawn. She kicked her way out of the blankets and stalked off to the cart to collect up some clothes to change into out of sight of the boys. It wasn't that she overly cared but propriety had been beaten into her skull by Auntie Muriel.

She returned to the cook fire in brown trousers and a loose, gray shirt. She took a seat and watched the teenage boy cooking several large eggs. He scooped two out of the pan and put them on a plate and passed it to Tris in a fluid motion. She was pleasantly surprised. Then she tried it. Her eyebrows shot up. "This is actually good."

"Thank you," Nariss replied. Then he caught the surprise in her voice and feigned hurt when he continued. "Oi, I can cook perfectly well!"

Tris just looked at him silently.

He pursed his lips and took the other two eggs off the fire and onto another plate. Then he took a bite and said, "My dear mother is a very powerful mage but she cannot cook even a little bit."

"Then where did you learn?"

"My Da owned a shop. He cooked everything for us. That was the general idea though. Ma married a cook so she wouldn't have to. I wouldn't be surprised if I came home and found she'd starved to death."

Tris looked harder at him. She could see pain touching his eyes. "Your father…"

"He died when I was twelve. His horse threw him when a lightning bolt struck a tree close by."

"Sorry," she murmured.

Nariss sighed and smiled. "No worries, it was a long time ago." He paused to take another bite of his eggs. "What about your parents? If you don't mind my asking," he added hastily.

"My parents are alive and well, as far as I know. They're merchants and I haven't seen them in eight years." There was no inflection in her voice, there never was.

"I'm sor—"

"Don't you dare pity me!" she snapped, anger coloring her face.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.

She looked down at her eggs rather than look at him and risk losing her temper. The silence was palpable until Briar called a good morning a few minutes later followed by a request for eggs.

"Coming up," Nariss called with a loud and cheerful voice.

The eggs were cooked and cooling on a plate when Briar returned, wearing green trousers and a lighter shade of green, open collared shirt. He was also carrying his favorite Shakkan. He set it aside, shoveling eggs into his mouth.

"That's a Shakkan, right?" Nariss asked.

"Yeah."

"I've never seen one up close before. It's quite beautiful."

"Thank you, I love to grow them. It's fun to work with them, especially the ones that cause trouble." He grinned. "They just need a touch of magic to shape them."

"Don't get him started," Tris said dully. "He'll go on for hours about his precious trees."

"My mother said an old friend of hers had a student who raised Shakkans."

"Well, I'm sure there are a few of us. I'd sell you one but you did get robbed two days ago."

Nariss laughed. "If we cross paths again, barring robbery, perhaps I'll make a purchase. The…challenge of looking after one intrigues me."

"Well," he started, casting a sidelong look at his sister, "I have this very stubborn one that just will not do what I ask of it."

Nariss chuckled. "Your trees sound like womenfolk."

"Watch it," Tris murmured.

"You three seem to be getting along." Unbeknownst to the teenagers, Niko had woken, gotten dressed and joined them. Tris felt slightly annoyed that she'd gotten caught up in the discussion and failed to notice Niko's movements. He took a seat and joined the discussion. "Aside from stubborn and troublesome, which tree would you recommend for Master Porter here?"

Briar launched into a memorized spiel about the various forms of miniature trees and Tris tuned it out, sending some winds out while calling others in. There were no bandits around, it seemed. Actually there was no one around. The nearest town was filled with sound according to one breeze but that one had that traveled far; it was still a day and a half's ride.

When they set off after breakfast, Tris took point, listening to winds since she couldn't scry without giving herself away. She knew Porter was watching her from his seat in the cart behind Niko, could feel his eyes burning into the back of her skull, but she continued to ignore him.

Briar, on the other hand, watched Nariss watch Tris. "Why are you staring at her?" he asked.

"She's interesting."

"Not good enough."

Nariss turned his eyes to him. "I'm reduced to staring since every time I try to get nearer, she growls or gallops away."

Briar looked at him hard. As Tris's friend, he wanted he wanted her to be happy. As her brother, he wanted to pound any guy who expressed interest with possibly bad intensions into the dirt. Of course, she was perfectly capable of doing that and much more to any man who hurt her, but it was his job to beat him senseless before that happened.

He wanted to see him interact with Tris before he decided. The problem was getting Tris to go along with it. Finally, he said, "Talk to her about Chime."

"Chime?"

"Her dragon." Briar pointed into the sky at the light refracting glass dragon that soared over her head. "Or just animals in general. She loves them; more than people."

Nariss smiled and Briar decided that there wasn't any ill intent. At least, not at the moment. Still…to give him a bit of a test. "Oh and, just so you know, if you do anything to upset her, she will summon a natural disaster to destroy you."

The completely serious tone made Nariss gulp. But, since he looked resolute after, Briar smiled. "Good luck."

Nariss nodded but said nothing.

**To be continued…**

**Please review. I love them very, very much.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Tamora Pierce's.**

***Sob* No one reviewed...*sadness***

**Chapter Nine**

The next morning, Tris woke to find Nariss cooking breakfast. A quick glance told her that Briar and Niko were still dead to the world. She sat up and looked over. "Morning."

"Good morning!" Nariss replied cheerfully. "Would you like eggs?"

"Yeah," Tris said through a yawn. She kicked her way out of the blankets and stalked off to the cart to collect up some clothes to change into out of sight of the boys. It wasn't that she overly cared but propriety had been beaten into her skull by Auntie Muriel.

She returned to the cook fire in brown trousers and a loose, gray shirt. She took a seat and watched the teenage boy cooking several large eggs. He scooped two out of the pan and put them on a plate and passed it to Tris in a fluid motion. She was pleasantly surprised. Then she tried it. Her eyebrows shot up. "This is actually good."

"Thank you," Nariss replied. Then he caught the surprise in her voice and feigned hurt when he continued. "Oi, I can cook perfectly well!"

Tris just looked at him silently.

He pursed his lips and took the other two eggs off the fire and onto another plate. Then he took a bite and said, "My dear mother is a very powerful mage but she cannot cook even a little bit."

"Then where did you learn?"

"My Da owned a shop. He cooked everything for us. That was the general idea though. Ma married a cook so she wouldn't have to. I wouldn't be surprised if I came home and found she'd starved to death."

Tris looked harder at him. She could see pain touching his eyes. "Your father…"

"He died when I was twelve. His horse threw him when a lightning bolt struck a tree close by."

"Sorry," she murmured.

Nariss sighed and smiled. "No worries, it was a long time ago." He paused to take another bite of his eggs. "What about your parents? If you don't mind my asking," he added hastily.

"My parents are alive and well, as far as I know. They're merchants and I haven't seen them in eight years." There was no inflection in her voice, there never was.

"I'm sor—"

"Don't you dare pity me!" she snapped, anger coloring her face.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly.

She looked down at her eggs rather than look at him and risk losing her temper. The silence was palpable until Briar called a good morning a few minutes later followed by a request for eggs.

"Coming up," Nariss called with a loud and cheerful voice.

The eggs were cooked and cooling on a plate when Briar returned, wearing green trousers and a lighter shade of green, open collared shirt. He was also carrying his favorite Shakkan. He set it aside, shoveling eggs into his mouth.

"That's a Shakkan, right?" Nariss asked.

"Yeah."

"I've never seen one up close before. It's quite beautiful."

"Thank you, I love to grow them. It's fun to work with them, especially the ones that cause trouble." He grinned. "They just need a touch of magic to shape them."

"Don't get him started," Tris said dully. "He'll go on for hours about his precious trees."

"My mother said an old friend of hers had a student who raised Shakkans."

"Well, I'm sure there are a few of us. I'd sell you one but you did get robbed two days ago."

Nariss laughed. "If we cross paths again, barring robbery, perhaps I'll make a purchase. The…challenge of looking after one intrigues me."

"Well," he started, casting a sidelong look at his sister, "I have this very stubborn one that just will not do what I ask of it."

Nariss chuckled. "Your trees sound like womenfolk."

"Watch it," Tris murmured.

"You three seem to be getting along." Unbeknownst to the teenagers, Niko had woken, gotten dressed and joined them. Tris felt slightly annoyed that she'd gotten caught up in the discussion and failed to notice Niko's movements. He took a seat and joined the discussion. "Aside from stubborn and troublesome, which tree would you recommend for Master Porter here?"

Briar launched into a memorized spiel about the various forms of miniature trees and Tris tuned it out, sending some winds out while calling others in. There were no bandits around, it seemed. Actually there was no one around. The nearest town was filled with sound according to one breeze but that one had that traveled far; it was still a day and a half's ride.

When they set off after breakfast, Tris took point, listening to winds since she couldn't scry without giving herself away. She knew Porter was watching her from his seat in the cart behind Niko, could feel his eyes burning into the back of her skull, but she continued to ignore him.

Briar, on the other hand, watched Nariss watch Tris. "Why are you staring at her?" he asked.

"She's interesting."

"Not good enough."

Nariss turned his eyes to him. "I'm reduced to staring since every time I try to get nearer, she growls or gallops away."

Briar looked at him hard. As Tris's friend, he wanted he wanted her to be happy. As her brother, he wanted to pound any guy who expressed interest with possibly bad intensions into the dirt. Of course, she was perfectly capable of doing that and much more to any man who hurt her, but it was his job to beat him senseless before that happened.

He wanted to see him interact with Tris before he decided. The problem was getting Tris to go along with it. Finally, he said, "Talk to her about Chime."

"Chime?"

"Her dragon." Briar pointed into the sky at the light refracting glass dragon that soared over her head. "Or just animals in general. She loves them; more than people."

Nariss smiled and Briar decided that there wasn't any ill intent. At least, not at the moment. Still…to give him a bit of a test. "Oh and, just so you know, if you do anything to upset her, she will summon a natural disaster to destroy you."

The completely serious tone made Nariss gulp. But, since he looked resolute after, Briar smiled. "Good luck."

Nariss nodded but said nothing.

**To be continued…**

**Please review. I love them very, very much.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: If it were mine, there would be more than one book every four bloody years (Stepping Stones doesn't count since it was available on audio cassette and CD in 2005.)**

Tris was starting to wonder why Nariss hadn't come to pester her yet today. Not that she wanted him to bother her but she was starting to get used to it. Mila, what was wrong with her? She huffed angrily and snapped her eyes shut.

Nariss chose that moment, of course, to come pester her. "Hi, Mistress Chandler."

Not bothering to open her eyes, she growled, "What do you want now?"

"I wanted to ask you about the dragon creature."

Tris opened her eyes and looked down at him. "Chime?"

"Yeah." He smiled brightly. "I mean, I know she's not a real dragon but how did she come to exist?"

"Bad magic skills."

"Pardon?"

She heaved a sigh. She actually didn't mind explaining this but she had to be careful not to expose herself as one of the four ambient mages that did crazy and impossible things by the time they were eleven and more besides as they grew up. Nariss was probably already suspicious since she'd been taught by _the_ Niklaren Goldeye. Finally she said, "A friend of mine is a glass mage. He had very little control of his power at the time I met him. He was born with so little magic that he found it unnecessary to bother with wards. He didn't know that after he'd been struck by lightning that his power had been amplified as well as being tied together with the lightning magic he'd come to possess. Anyway, he was carelessly pulling magic from everywhere around the shop. When I interrupted, the lightning and magic spilled out of his blow pipe and formed into Chime."

Nariss stared up at her enraptured. That kind of weird power was amazing. He could weave words, they could protect, heal, create emotion but he couldn't make a sensient creature even by accident. "So why do you have him?"

"Her. She likes me more." It was the simplest explanation.

"And what happened to your friend?"

"He went home and I continued traveling."

"I see. So, you're not…involved."

Tris jerked in the saddle. "What in Mila's name would give you that idea?"

Nariss grinned. "So you're not taken then."

She grumbled something distinctly rude in Trader Talk and kicked her horse into a gallop, leaving Nariss and his foolish notions behind.

Briar caught up to him after Tris had vanished over a crest in the road. "What did you do?"

"I asked her if she had a lover, he replied, unabashed.

Briar rolled his eyes. "You're a fool of a bleater, you know that right?"

Nariss nodded brightly as if it was a glowing complement. Green Man, if this was how he behaved with Coppercurls, Briar was surprised Tris hadn't kicked him or something worse. "I'm making progress."

Briar looked away. "Just keep telling yourself that. Keep in mind, we'll reach the next town tomorrow. You won't be coming with us when we leave."

"Oh, but I'm fit as a fiddle." He jogged ahead a bit to demonstrate.

"In that case, I'll be drugging you to keep you in bed all morning."

"Why would you ruin my last shot until she and I are both back at Lightsbridge?"

"Better not try to leave with us then." Briar smiled. He'd give Porter his shot but, from the sparks that flicked along his and Tris's connection, her nerves and patience with the academic mage were fraying very quickly.

"I won't," Nariss muttered, somewhat crestfallen now.

"Good."

Behind the boys, Niko looked on. There was something about Porter that struck him as familiar. He'd noticed it that first morning but he'd been unable to place him. He still couldn't recall why the young mage resembled someone he knew but… Well, in any case, they wouldn't be with him much longer and that would be good since his last view of the future, in the fire as it waned on last night's watch, was very dark indeed.

…

In the early hours of the morning, Tris woke abruptly to the sound of Chime screeching a warning and Niko calling them to wakefulness. She scrambled in her blankets for a moment before simply blasting them off with a stiff puff of wind and getting to her feet.

A few feet away, Briar was also getting to his feet. Tris could see power from his body leaching into the ground and spreading out into every plant, every blade of grass and every tree that surrounded their small clearing just off the road.

"What's going on?" Nariss asked groggily as he sat up. Niko was on his feet as well, looking around but his powers were fairly useless in the field of battle. Not that it mattered. Tris and Briar would take down any group in a matter of moments.

Tris sent out her breezes to find and strangle the people she could feel surrounding the camp. There were at least eight of them. Although she could only see five, she felt three more hiding in the trees. She put windy vice grips around each throat while plant life exploded under the bandits' feet, wrapping them up nicely, much the way they had several days ago. She pulled back her power once the men were either unconscious or tightly bound.

She panted. Between dealing with Nariss, fighting the bandits and just being on the road so long, her power was starting to be sapped. She'd need to draw from stronger forces soon.

But not yet. She refused to suffer any bad effects of using such power until Porter was left behind them and she could go back to using her powers the way she wanted.

"Whoa, that was awesome." Tris cursed silently. She'd forgotten Nariss was observing her. Once again, she questioned what exactly was wrong with her. She was losing it a bit. She took a few deep breaths, allowing her magic to recede back into her core.

"It took too much energy," Briar said. "It's draining." He made it sound like she was less powerful than she actually was, for which, she was grateful. It might deter the academic mage from blabbing about her strength to other students at Lightsbridge.

"Come on," she said gruffly, changing the subject. "We're almost to the village. We'll tell them where they can pick up their troublemakers." She glanced briefly at the middle aged man on the ground in front of her. He was awake and his icy blue eyes glared daggers at her under unruly brown locks. She looked down, catching sight of a flash of magic on a purse that hung from the bandit's belt. She reached down and grabbed it.

She stared at the thing then glanced over at Nariss who'd looked away, focusing on Briar who was checking an unconscious attacker. She pocketed the coin purse and glanced back down at the bound man. Then she lifted her chin in disdain and walked away to get some fresh clothes for the day ahead.

**To be continued.**

**Please review, if only to tell me you think it sucks**

**Thanks for reading!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the thoughts in my mind. Characters and magical powers are property of the brilliant Tamora Pierce.**

**Chapter Eleven**

Tris, Briar, Niko and Nariss arrived in the village by midday and settled down for lunch at a small, open air shop which carried smells of spices and roasting duck and pork mixing in a mouthwatering way.

"There's a healer woman two streets over who can treat your injuries," Tris said as they were finishing up their meals.

"I don't really think that's necessary." Nariss looked over at Briar. "Master Mage, your salves are beyond compare." He gave a sort of half bow that made Briar choke back a laugh with a large sip of lemon flavored water.

"You flatter me. However, it would be best if you rest here for a few days before continuing on your way."

Nariss sighed. "You forget, I was robbed. After I finish 'resting,' I shall have to spend several days working for travel money."

Tris had thought of that. Picking at her brother's thoughts might have been rude but it had given her a decent warning. She reached into her breeches' pocket and drew out the rather large leather purse. She dropped it onto the table where it clanked audibly, filled with coins.

"This is…" Nariss trailed off, staring at it.

"It's yours. The spelled coins bear your magic. You'll be fine." Tris pushed out her chair and got to her feet.

"Ah, yes," Nariss said with false cheer as he took the purse, which was a bit heavier than when he'd last had it—obviously the bandit had added to it since all of his coins were spelled. They would not allow anyone who could not remove the spell to use them. It was worthless if they were stolen by a mage stronger than he but most bandits weren't a problem. Mostly, it would just annoy them. "Thank you."

"It's nothing," Tris replied coolly. "Just get better. Then go home."

"Of course. Are you three leaving after lunch?"

"Yes," Tris said shortly before Briar could interject and make the rest of the trip total chaos.

"I see." He looked slightly crestfallen but it vanished after a moment and was replaced by a false cheer. "Well, I'm very glad to Master Goldeye, Master Moss," he said properly. "Mistress Chandler…Tris, it's been a pleasure." He stood and paused, debating something. Then he swooped low and pressed a quick kiss to Tris's cheek.

Tris froze for maybe a second before decking him in the shoulder. He pulled back with a chuckle and almost leering smile on his face. "Until we meet again," he said, bowing deeply before turning away and walking down the street with a bounce in his step.

"Impertinent, over the top, childish fool," Tris growled under her breath, deeply considering zapping him with a rather large amount of lightning.

Briar chuckled. "Now look, you've gone and let him get under your skin."

She rounded on him, her braids whipping. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"You're blushing."

"I'm not!" she snapped, getting irritated. Briar only laughed harder, tears pouring out of his eyes.

She reached for a small bolt of lightning and grasped his hand sending the shock into it. Briar yelped and looked down at his hand as she dropped it. All of the flowers and vines in the tattoo were suddenly shriveled and black. "Green Man, Tris, why'd you do that?"

"Don't say that ever again."

"Fine, Gods, you didn't have to do that." He sent flares of living magic into his hand, bringing the colors and magic back to life. "That's a neat trick though."

"I doubt I'll come across anyone I can use that technique on again. Let's go."

…

They left town, traveling south and making good time mostly, Briar decided, because Tris had been allowed to set the pace at a trot and kept them moving, putting as much distance between her and the town, or rather, Nariss Porter, as possible.

That night passed with ease as well with perfect weather and no bandits. The next three days and nights followed in much the same way. Briar began to grow suspicious, especially when Tris grew more irritable as the days wore on. On the fourth night, Briar spent time sifting through the protective magic to find other magic that Tris was using. He found it while she was on watch.

It was a quiet, widespread magic. It was a shifty sort of magic. The main part went into the air, it seemed to be shifting the weather. She was manipulating the area around them to keep the localized weather pleasant. Her magic also spread out for miles using Sandry-like threads of magic that cocooned the areas in protective magic.

She was keeping weather good and bandits away…She seemed quite determined to keep going south at a fast pace. Briar found himself amused by the whole thing. Tris had perfected her ability to avoid problems.

Briar said as much to Niko while Tris slept. He nodded, having sensed it three days earlier. He didn't bother with why she had done it, simply pleased at how developed her skills had become. Briar had been annoyed but hadn't pressed the issue. If he had, Tris might have overheard and given him a personal rain cloud.

…

When they reached the next town, they decided to stay for a couple of days—Tris only grudgingly agreed—in order rest the horses.

In town, Briar found a pretty, young blonde with pale, gray eyes and a pert nose on her face and voluptuous curves in all the right places and disappeared. Tris and Niko were left to their own devices to find dinner.

They found a small shop and began to talk.

**To be continued…**

**The discussion will be held in the next chapter. I'm too tired to right it now. Please review and thanks for reading!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: As per usual, I own nothing in this series.**

**How long has it been since I updated? Damn, seven months, sorry about that.**

**Chapter Twelve**

Tris and Niko ordered tea the moment they were seated. When the girl disappeared, Tris asked, "Have you seen anything interesting of late?"

Niko nodded. She may have wanted to hide who she was from the Porter boy but Niko hadn't done so. "Nothing in the very near future. Mostly, I was trying to make out the future surrounding my friend."

"The friend we're traveling in this roundabout matter to see?"

"Are you questioning my motives?" Niko asked.

"Certainly not. It's only mild curiosity."

Niko chuckled and rubbed his beard absently. "I foresaw us in Hajra and then at sea. The next day, Noriko's letter arrived. Of course, as far as she knows, I was nowhere near where she sent it so I'm not worried about taking this _roundabout_ route to Ninver."

Tris nodded and prompted Niko to ask, "Are you worried about going to Ninver?"

"No." She hesitated. "The odds of bumping into my parents and either of us recognizing the other are next to none." It was a lie but Tris didn't care. "Besides, we won't be there for long. We'll go to Nansye, was it?"

"Yes."

"Well, the danger must not be very near if it doesn't matter when you get there?"

"I foresaw us traveling this way and still arriving to help Noriko before the danger comes. Keep in mind, we shall be in Sotat in a matter of days and in Hajra a fortnight or so after that. All told, we shall reach Ninver before the summer's end."

"So definitely not going back to school next term?"

"I suppose not," Niko replied.

"I didn't wish to continue attendance anyway," she replied. That wasn't entirely true, but there was enough distaste for hiding her power that she'd rather not.

"Then on we go."

She nodded mutely.

Their food was served and they ate in comfortable silence. Briar joined them toward the end of their meal. He was winded and sweating profusely. He pulled a chair from a nearby, empty table and collapsed onto it, gasping for air. Tris and Niko stared at him. Finally, Niko asked, "Would you like to share?"

"Mistress Amber has an elder brother. A very large, elder brother." He snagged Tris's tea cup and drained it, earning a reproachful glare from Tris. "In any case, I'll be staying with you tonight." He looked at his sister with a straight face and said, "Would you salve my wounded heart?"

"More like wounded ego," she replied with a snark. "No."

"A pity. You would salve Porter's wounds."

"I most certainly would not!" she snapped. Irritation blazed in her eyes.

"Please don't shock me again," he said with mock fear.

Tris rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the last of her food. Except her plate was empty. The last bit of rabbit was hastily being chewed by Briar. She glowered furiously. Briar only grinned, his mouth filled with rabbit. She wanted to smack him.

"Children?" Niko asked tentatively, wondering if his previous thoughts about them maturing were actually true.

"Sorry," Briar said, dropping the smile. Tris was silent.

"I think we should all turn in," Niko said after a moment. "A good night's sleep can do wonders."

It had begun to get late and they intended to leave early in the morning. That night, Tris fell asleep as she stroked Chime. Her first dream was that of Nariss Porter. He was smiling and coaxing her onward to something she couldn't see. It grew darker and darker then she could see nothing at all. She could still hear Nariss calling and urging her to move forward.

She was completely blind now and she called out to Nariss, who seemed to be going further away to wait. The voice was different though. Richer and throatier. She'd also called out in the language of her home country, Ninver, rather than in Common as she usually spoke. It took her a moment to realize that Nariss had also been speaking Ninese. She looked around, straining to see anything.

Flashes of magic appeared then. She couldn't tell what it was but it was aimed at her. Attacking her. She didn't know whose power it was or why it wanted to kill her but it did.

She woke to find Niko shaking her slightly. Above them, Chime flew and screeched. She finally landed in Tris's lap and settled like a cat. "What's going on?" Tris asked.

"I had a strange dream of nothing but darkness and magic. I got up when Chime started to screech. She must have been trying to rouse you."

Tris rubbed her eyes. "I had the same dream." She left Porter out of it for now. "Thank you chime," she murmured, looking down at her precious dragon.

"Seems like we'll have to pick up our pace, doesn't it?"

Tris nodded. "How long until dawn?"

"Two hours."

"We should just go then."

Niko nodded. "I'll settle with the innkeeper. Can you get Briar up?"

"Of course." As she said it, she sent a mental call down her connection to Briar. His answering yelp which could be heard through the wall signaled he was up.

Niko simply shook his head. "I'll bring the wagon to the front so you two get packed up."

"I don't think either of us actually unpacked," Briar said, appearing in the doorway. He'd slept through Chime's shriek but had been unable to ignore Tris when she was in his head. "We leavin' already?"

"Yes," Niko replied.

"Good thing I spent the night here then," Briar replied with a smile.

"Very," Tris growled, still trying to wake up.

"What's going on then?"

"Niko and I both had a dream with strange magic. We're going to try to get to Ninver faster."

"You sure you don't just want to see your family sooner?"

Tris didn't bother to answer. She didn't want to see her family at all. And, since they didn't know she was one of the infamous four ambient mages that were talked about all the time, they wouldn't want to see her.

"Sorry," Briar murmured, realizing the truth behind her silence. "I didn't mean—"

"It's fine. Go back to your room and gather up yours and Niko's stuff." She turned away and began grabbing her own things. Briar left without a word and she was grateful for that.

**To be continued…**

**Yay, some of my writer's block has gone away! Sorry this took so many months to write. Please review!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of this. If you haven't figured that out yet, well…that's a bit sad.**

**Okay, so, after TWO YEARS, this story is being updated. I don't know when it will be updated again, but please enjoy it for now.**

**Chapter Thirteen**

Tris was watching flickers dance on the wind as they whipped through her horse's mane. It wasn't all that interesting today. Still it was better than nothing since Briar was still nursing a wounded ego and Niko just looked worried and was being a bit evasive about the reason. Chime was flying high above them, using the air currents to swoop about crazily. Finally Briar broke the silence, forcing Tris back to the present.

"Are we going to make it to town tonight?"

"No," Tris said automatically.

"Great. Is everyone going to be crabby for the rest of the day?"

"I'm not crabby, as you say," Niko contradicted. Tris merely shrugged. If he so wanted to, he could peer into her mind and see she was merely annoyed at his antics last night.

"You sure seem like it," Briar replied. Tris patted her horse, listening. It was easier than talking.

"I'm sure I have no idea what you are talking about," Niko replied.

"Spare us," Briar said dully. Tris felt his irritation through their connection. It was only a great deal of respect that kept the comment from being scathing. "Niko, you're acting strange. What is it you're not telling us?"

Niko paused, considering. Finally, he said, "I had a vision that Noriko was in danger. It won't happen for a while, mostly it seems like the portents are of darkness. That was why she sent me the message. When we get there, I fear we may be too late."

"Then why are we taking such a long roundabout route. Why not just catch a boat out of Summersea instead of going all the way to Hajra?"

"Because it is necessary," Niko replied.

"How?"

"Because I have seen it," Niko said, trying to sound patient.

"So?" That was the problem; Briar was very good with the living magics but when it came to visionary magics, he had little to no grasp.

"So I've seen it too," Tris interrupted, wishing she didn't have to. However, she felt no desire to listen to Niko and Briar go in circles as Niko tried to explain visions and dreams of the future to Briar.

"You have?" Briar asked, startled. "When?"

"A while back."

"Well, why didn't you just say it?"

_Because it wouldn't have mattered whether I saw them or not if you would just listen to Niko already._ She thought irritably. Briar grimaced behind her. "Sorry Niko."

"It's fine," Niko replied. They lapsed into silence yet again.

The hours passed in silence. Briar finally got bored and tied his horse on a line to the wagon before getting in and settling himself in a circle of Shakkans to meditate. Tris and Niko allowed the silence to carry because that was what they had done when they'd traveled before.

That night, and the next three passed uneventfully. Other than a light rain on the third night, they had no problems with weather, bandits or finding clearings in which to camp. On the fourth day, they came to a small village.

The farmers greeted them at the edge of the village with weapons. Tris counted eleven of them, ranging in ages from fourteen to fifty. They also carried a variety of weapons. Two crossbows, a long bow and farming equipment like pitchforks and trowels. Tris glanced down at Chime who was sleeping in a satchel hanging off of her horse. She silently placed a wind barrier over the opening in case she suddenly woke up and decided she wanted out of the bag.

Then the lead stepped forward. "Why do you come here?" he asked in heavily accented common.

"We're just passing through," Niko called.

One of the teenagers muttered something in a language Tris didn't know. Briar did though. The boy spoke in a rough dialect that belonged to those of northern Sotat. As a southerner, living in Hajra and a street kid, he spoke the language in a completely different way.

Of course, he could still tell that the teenager had definitely said something rude.

"Hey," Briar called out using the Hajran street dialect. "Don't be mutterin' rude stuff about us just 'cause you think we ain't gonna understand."

The youth looked momentarily stunned. "You talk like a Hajran," the teen replied.

"I am Hajran," Briar called back. "Look, we're just travelin' to Hajra to catch a boat."

"Why not go to Summersea?" the leader asked in common. Niko and Tris looked confused but Briar murmured in her mind, _I just told them that we are going to Hajra to take a boat._ She relayed it to Niko in a soft tone that didn't carry.

"We're going to Hajra because the port is preferable to Summersea's. Ships to Capchen are more common."

Tris wasn't entirely sure if that was true or not but it would suit their needs better than saying they were going there because a vision told them too.

"Do you intend to stay here?" the leader asked in Common.

"Not if you really don't want us to," Niko replied.

The adults all glanced at each other briefly, seeming to communicate silently. Then the leader nodded. "You may stay in my house. There is no inn here and I have no daughters living there anymore." He seemed to look pointedly at Briar.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Niko said.

"Of course," the farmer said with a nod.

The three travelers followed as the leader turned and started back to the farm. The others formed a lose circle around them and the wagon.

_Does this kind of feel like a trap to you?_ Briar's thoughts rippled down their connection.

_Everything feels like trap these days. But they can't exactly fight us._ Tris looked at the youngest teen, who eyed her. He seemed to be sizing her up, trying to figure out if he could take her if things went south.

Yeah right. She glared down at the kid who immediately looked cowed and averted his eyes. _Maybe it is a trap for you. To be stuck in a house with no eligible women. How tragic._

It was the first joke she'd cracked on the trip. Of course, Briar found it less than amusing.

"We're here," the leader called.

"Let's get this over with," Briar muttered.

**To be continued…**

**Ugh, this chapter took FOREVER. Sorry to make you wait so long.**

**Thanks for reading and please review.**


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